New Bedford High Student represents Massachusetts in Boys Nation program

Friday

Jun 27, 2014 at 12:01 AM

NEW BEDFORD — Dyllan Almeida, a junior and incoming battalion commander in the JROTC program at New Bedford High School, has planned his future.

CAROL KOZMA

NEW BEDFORD — Dyllan Almeida, a junior and incoming battalion commander in the JROTC program at New Bedford High School, has planned his future.

"All I want to do is become an officer in the Air Force and fly planes," he said.

But he added it's "still early in the game," and he does not dismiss the idea of running for office.

He's already had a trial run at the job.

Last week, he and another 400 people went to Stonehill College in Easton to participate in the Boys State program. There, he and one other student were elected to represent the state in the Boys Nation program, according to a School Department press statement.

Almeida said at Boys State he made several speeches before he was elected.

"A lot of it was networking," he said.

In the press release, Superintendent Pia Durkin said: "We are so proud of Dyllan for representing New Bedford at Boys State and for being chosen among many other student leaders to represent Massachusetts at Boys Nation. Dyllan has distinguished himself as a true scholar and leader at New Bedford High School."

At Boys Nation, Almeida will spend July 18-25 at Marymount University in Arlington, Va. and visit sites in Washington D.C. He and 98 "senators," young men like himself, will learn about the federal government, sitting on committees and holding hearings on bills, according to the press release. Almeida said he will be able to meet officials in Congress.

Almeida said Sgt. Jerry Bedard, JROTC Army instructor at NBHS, and Sgt. Raymond Como, also an instructor at the school told him about the program.

"(I) couldn't do it without them," he said.

Almeida also said he got help from the American Legion Post 280 in Mattapoisett, which sponsored him for the program.

Boys Nation and Boys State are sponsored by the American Legion, according to the department's press release. At Boys Nation, students will be able to learn about the federal government through lectures, visits to federal agencies and institutions, memorials, and historical sites according to the press release.